Hello and welcome. I love your "don't mourn organize" for all it stands for! Joe Hill, labor history, etc. I think that if you could post a photo of the area you want to put the shrubs in it might inspire some posts in reply. If you enter the words "post" and "photo" in the Garden Web search box, you will get lots of information on how to post a photo.

If you are successful at keeping the deer out, my first thought for something easy would be dogwood (Cornus). There are some that are very beautiful in the winter and they would grow very well in a situation like yours. I have one called 'Midwinter Fire'. In winter it is brilliant red on the bottom half of branches and brilliant yellow on the upper half. Living in Montana I really like to get some winter color into my landscape. I am in US Zone 4 and it does fine here. I think Zone 3 would be too cold for it. If you do a Google image search with the words: Cornus "Midwinter Fire" you will see lots of photos of it. It really is stunning after the leaves fall and right up till it is covered with leaves again in spring.

I should have spoken to your desire for fruit. There are some very hardy cherries developed by the University of Saskatchewan. They are shrub cherries that grow to about 2 meters/6feet tall. They are being bread to provide a commercial crop for the Canadian prairie and are very hardy. Some were bred to be good for eating fresh and some for use in pies, etc. The one I would love to get is called Juliet (sometimes spelled Juliette) and is a fresh eating cherry. Unfortunately these cherries can only be sold in Canada (lucky you!) You might need to order from a mail order nursery. If you Google the words: cherries University Saskatchewan Juliet OR Juliette, you will find nurseries that sell them. It would be best to plant Juliet and one other variety (the nurseries will have more than one. (I know one is called Romeo). Cross pollination increases fruit production and you can't get cross-pollination with only one variety.

They should be planted 5 or 6 feet apart. They need to have water withheld after harvest so that they will stop growing and harden off for winter. If you decide to buy, ask for instructions for how to grow.

Hope you find something you love!